Golf cart mounted apparatus for cleaning golf shoe

ABSTRACT

In general the invention is directed toward an apparatus for cleaning golf shoes which includes a sheet of material having a cleaning surface which can be attached to the floorboard of a golf cart such that the cleaning surface is exposed to the operator of the golf cart. The invention allows a golfer to clean their shoes during the normal course of the round without undue delay due to the convenient location of the device on the golf cart.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to golf equipment. More particularly, thepresent invention concerns the cleaning of the soles of golf shoes.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

One of the important purposes of golf shoes is to provide traction forthe player, both to prevent slippage during the golf swing and toprovide for safe navigation of the golf course. This purpose isaccomplished by various spikes, lugs, cleats, etc., attached to thesoles of typical golf shoes. During the course of a round of golf,debris, including mud, grass, and leaves, accumulates on the soles ofthe shoes reducing the effectiveness of these various traction providingdevices. Thus, the soles of the shoes must be frequently cleaned toprovide the appropriate traction for playing the game and walking thecourse.

The frequent cleaning of golf shoes is accomplished through the use ofbrushes, tees, sticks or whatever is available to the player. Oftenstationary brushes are located around the golf course for the purpose ofcleaning the soles of the golfer's shoes.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally comprises a sheet of material having acleaning surface. The cleaning surface could, for example, comprise aplurality of projections The sheet of material may be configured to beremovably attached to the floor board of a power golf cart. Thiscleaning surface, when attached to the cart, provides an efficient andeffective means for cleaning the soles of golf shoes. Since the cleaningsurface is attached to the cart rather than scattered around the courselike stationary brushes, little delay in play occurs because the playerdoes not have to go out of their way to use the shoe cleaning device.

In one embodiment, the sheet of material is wrapped around the outsideedge of the floorboard. An advantage of this embodiment is that thedebris removed from the shoes can easily fall off of the edge of thefloorboard as a result of normal jostling of the cart, preventingunsightly accumulation of debris on the device and ensuring continuedeffectiveness. The sheet of material may be attached to the floorboardby friction, a hook and loop fastener, a snap fastener, a threadedfastener, or by other mechanism well known in the art.

A second embodiment of the invention has the first sheet of materialwith the cleaning surface attached to an underlying second sheet ofmaterial, where the underlying second sheet of material is configured tobe removably attached to the floor board of a golf cart. The secondsheet of material can be attached as described above. In this embodimentthe second sheet of material may be advantageously made of a moredurable constituent to improve the durability of the invention and thesecurity of the attachment to the golf cart.

The invention may also comprise a sheet of material having a cleaningsurface, the second sheet of material described above, and a taperedborder surrounding the at least a portion of the perimeter of the secondsheet of material, where the tapered border provides an aestheticallypleasing transition from the shoe cleaning device to the floor board andimproves the safety by minimizing any abrupt edges of the shoe cleaningdevice.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a golf cart with an embodiment of theinvention attached.

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of a second embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 4 is a view of a third embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 5 is a view of a fourth embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a golf cart. It shows a golf cart 40with a floorboard 10, a dash 20, and a seat 30. The cleaning surface 50of an embodiment of the invention is shown attached to the floorboard40.

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of an embodiment of the invention. Theinvention is directed at an apparatus for cleaning golf shoes. Thisembodiment of the apparatus includes a sheet of material with a cleaningsurface 50, a second sheet of material 60, a tapered border 70, and anattachment mechanism 80. The second sheet of material 60 has a U-shapedconfiguration. Its shape is configured so that it can be slid over theoutside edge of the floorboard 10 of the golf cart 40 between the dash20 and the seat 30. The tapered border 70 extends around at least aportion of the periphery of the sheet of material 60 so that it extendsonto the floorboard 10 of the golf cart 40. In this embodiment thecleaning surface 50 is attached to the second sheet of material 60 withepoxy, glue, or a similar bonding material. The cleaning surface 50 isinset within the tapered border 70 so that the tapered border provides aprotective and decorative covering for the second sheet of material 60.The assembled device may be slid over the outside edge of the floorboard10 of the golf cart 40 between the dash 20 and the seat 30. It is thenremovably attached to the floorboard 10.

The embodiment shown in FIG. 2 may also be narrower at one end than theother. This would allow for attachment to the floor board 10 of the golfcart 40 with the narrower end disposed more near dash 20 to minimizeinterference with the player's feet while riding in the golf cart.Alternatively, the embodiment could be of a constant width or any othersize or shape.

To use the invention, the person wanting to clean their shoe simply rubsthe shoe across the cleaning surface 50 of the invention until thebottom of the shoe is clean. This can be done in the ordinary course ofentering, exiting, or riding in the cart. This eliminates the delayinherent in using stationary brushes installed around the course orbrushes located in other less convenient locations. Since the inventionis removably attached to the cart, it may be easily removed foroccasional cleaning or replacement. The invention can be attachedanywhere on the floorboard 10 of the golf cart 40 so that it is easilyaccessible to the driver of the golf cart and any passenger. More thanone unit of the invention may be attached to a single golf cart toprovide ease of access and use.

In one embodiment of the invention, the cleaning surface 50 is made ofplastic and contains a plurality of bristles, each approximately ½″long. The sheet of material from which the bristles extend is about ⅛″thick. The cleaning surface 50 is inset within the tapered border 70 andfastened to the tapered border with epoxy. The tapered border 70 in thisembodiment is made of formed rubber. The second sheet of material 60 inthis embodiment is made of stainless steel and is glued to the taperedborder with epoxy to provide a durable base for attachment to thefloorboard 10.

Turning now to FIG. 3, another embodiment of the invention isrepresented. The cleaning surface 50, tapered border 70 and the secondsheet of material 90 each have holes 100 for accommodating threadedfasteners. In this embodiment the cleaning surface 50 is inset withinthe tapered border 70 and affixed to the second sheet of material 90with epoxy or a similar adhesive. In some models of golf carts, thefloorboard 10 may have a step plate attached to the indented area 110shown. Golf carts manufactured by E-Z-GO® of Augusta, Ga., for example,have such a removable step plate attached to the floorboard 10 bythreaded fasteners. In this embodiment, the invention is specially sizedand shaped to replace the removable step plate originally provided withthe golf cart and to be removably fastened in its place. This embodimentmay be provided without the holes 100 and could also be removablyfastened to the floorboard by any mechanism known in the art.

Turning now to FIG. 4, a single component embodiment designed to replacethe step plate of the golf cart 40 is shown. This embodiment may beconstructed of one component, for example injection molded plastic,instead of several pieces, and may then be attached to the floorboard 10in place of the removable step plate by any mechanism as describedabove. This embodiment may have a tapered border 70, and a cleaningsurface 50 with holes 100 all formed from the same piece of material.

Turning now to FIG. 5, the device could be designed so that sheet ofmaterial itself provides the attachment mechanism 80. A single componentembodiment of this invention can be constructed from plastic usinginjection molding techniques, for example. A U-shaped cleaning surfaceformed of a single piece of material can be removably attached to thefloorboard 10 of the golf cart 40. This would be accomplished byconstructing the invention from material which is elastic, such that theU-shaped embodiment can be opened to slide over the floorboard 10 butwill return to its original shape with enough elastic tension to clampfirmly to the floorboard 10. Some golf cart models have a strip of metalalong the edge of the floorboard 10 to secure the flooring material,while others have exposed structural members or other irregularities onor around the floorboard 10. Connection of the invention in this mannermay be aided by projections on the invention which engage with suitableirregularities in the area of attachment. This attachment mechanism 80may also include one or more projections or cavities on either theinvention or the floorboard specially formed to improve the security ofthe attachment. Alternatively, the attachment mechanism 80 could be ahook and loop fastener, a snap fastener, a threaded fastener, or anyfastening mechanism known in the art. This embodiment could include atapered border 70 also formed of the same piece of material.

In another embodiment, the cleaning surface 50 of the invention couldsimply be wrapped around or attached to the floor board 10 of the golfcart 40 directly using the above-mentioned attachment mechanisms or anywell known in the art.

While exemplary embodiments of this invention have been illustrated anddescribed, it should be understood that various changes, adaptations,and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spiritof the invention and the scope of the appended claims.

1. An apparatus for cleaning golf shoes comprising: a. a sheet ofmaterial having a cleaning surface; and b. an attachment mechanismconfigured to be attached to a floorboard of a golf cart for mountingthe sheet of material such that the cleaning surface is exposed to anoperator of the golf cart.
 2. The apparatus for cleaning golf shoes ofclaim 1, wherein the cleaning surface is made of injection moldedplastic.
 3. The apparatus for cleaning golf shoes of claim 1, whereinthe cleaning surface comprises a plurality of projections.
 4. Theapparatus for cleaning golf shoes of claim 3, wherein the projectionsare bristles.
 5. The apparatus for cleaning golf shoes of claim 1,wherein the sheet of material is mounted on the floorboard between aseat and a dash of the golf cart.
 6. The apparatus for cleaning golfshoes of claim 5, wherein the sheet of material is configured to replacea step plate on the golf cart.
 7. The apparatus for cleaning golf shoesof claim 1, wherein the sheet of material is wrapped around an outsideedge of the floorboard between a seat and a dash of the golf cart. 8.The apparatus for cleaning golf shoes of claim 7, wherein the sheet ofmaterial is flexible and the attachment mechanism comprises the elastictension of the sheet of material.
 9. An apparatus for cleaning golfshoes comprising: a. a first sheet of material having a cleaningsurface; b. and a second sheet of material attached to and underlyingthe first sheet of material, said second sheet of material comprising anattachment mechanism configured to be attached to a floorboard of a golfcart such that the cleaning surface is exposed to an operator of thegolf cart.
 10. The apparatus for cleaning golf shoes of claim 9, whereinthe cleaning surface comprises a plurality of projections.
 11. Theapparatus for cleaning golf shoes of claim 10, wherein the projectionsare bristles.
 12. The apparatus for cleaning golf shoes of claim 9,wherein the first sheet of material and the second sheet of material aremounted on the floorboard between a seat and a dash of the golf cart.13. The apparatus for cleaning golf shoes of claim 12, wherein the firstsheet of material and the second sheet of material are configured toreplace a step plate on the golf cart.
 14. The apparatus for cleaninggolf shoes of claim 9, wherein the first sheet of material and thesecond sheet of material are wrapped around an outside edge of thefloorboard between a seat and a dash of the golf cart.
 15. An apparatusfor cleaning golf shoes comprising a sheet of material having a cleaningsurface; a. a second sheet of material attached to and underlying thefirst sheet of material, said second sheet of material comprising anattachment mechanism configured to be attached to a floorboard of a golfcart such that the cleaning surface is exposed to an operator of thegolf cart; b. and a tapered border attached to at least a portion of theperimeter of the second sheet of material, said tapered borderdecreasing in thickness from the second sheet of material outward sothat the transition from the floorboard to the apparatus is less abrupt.16. The apparatus for cleaning golf shoes of claim 15, wherein thecleaning surface comprises a plurality of projections.
 17. The apparatusfor cleaning golf shoes of claim 16, wherein the projections arebristles.
 18. The apparatus for cleaning golf shoes of claim 15, whereinthe first sheet of material, the second sheet of material, and thetapered border are mounted on the floorboard between a seat and a dashof the golf cart.
 19. The apparatus for cleaning golf shoes of claim 18,wherein the first sheet of material, the second sheet of material, andthe tapered border are configured to replace a step plate on the golfcart.
 20. The apparatus for cleaning golf shoes of claim 15, wherein thefirst sheet of material, the second sheet of material, and the taperedborder are wrapped around an outside edge of the floorboard between aseat and a dash of the golf cart.